


Waiting

by LiraelClayr007



Series: My 2018 - 31 Days of Ficmas! [10]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Anticipation, Candles, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-11
Updated: 2018-12-11
Packaged: 2019-09-16 08:23:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16950420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiraelClayr007/pseuds/LiraelClayr007
Summary: Somewhere the Doctor and Rose have picked up an Advent wreath. The Doctor uses the candles to talk with Rose about the upside of waiting.





	Waiting

There is a scratch, a hiss, a tiny flare of light.

The immediate darkness brightens somewhat as the Doctor touches the match to the candle between them, but outside their tiny sphere of light the darkness of the night is nearly absolute. “The candle of hope,” he says. He lights the second candle on the wreath. “The candle of peace.” He dips the match once more. “The candle of joy.”

His eyes glimmer in the candlelight, melted chocolate touched with gold. Rose is only semi-aware that the outside world exists; right now there is a small evergreen wreath, three lit candles, one unlit candle, and her Doctor.

“Advent is about waiting,” he explains. “It’s something we forget about on a timeship. ‘It’s ten days til the moon landing? Ah well, miscalculated. Just let me flip a few switches, pull this lever, and...yes, right then, here we are!’” He winks at her, and she laughs outright; he’d said nearly that exact thing a few days before.

“But sometimes--” he pauses to run a finger across the palm of her hand, ever so slowly-- “there is delight in waiting. Anticipation makes us...shiver.”

He looks directly into her eyes as he speaks, and she  _ does _ shiver. She’s not sure if it’s his words or his touch or his eyes… For a moment that stretches into two she forgets to breathe, then his finger brushes against her palm again and sparks fly across her skin. Her cheeks flush and she gasps. The briney air is heavy and warm, but her heat has nothing at all to do with local weather patterns.

“Are y--” she starts, but it comes out raspy and unintelligible, so she swallows hard and tries again. “Are you gonna light the last candle?”

“That, Rose Tyler,” he says, drawing lazy circles on the back of her hand now, “is the candle of love. And it will have to wait.” He bends forward slightly, flips her hand over, and plants a feather-light kiss on the inside of her wrist. She gasps again. He quickly blows out the candles; one, two, three.

Into the darkness, his voice low, he says, “Anticipation.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> 31 Days of Ficmas || day 10 - candles
> 
> (Did I really just use an advent wreath this way?? Yeah, I did. I'm awful. Feel free to tell me so. ;) Also, I actually light an advent wreath with my family every night in the weeks leading up to Christmas, so it's all in good fun.)


End file.
